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New Ducati Superbike May Be Smart Enough to Keep You From Crashing It

The Panigale's software is designed to prevent unintended wheelies as you exit turns.

The new Panigale's 1,285-cc V-twin motor puts out 205 horsepower.

The bike weighs in at at 367 pounds (dry), which makes its horsepower all the more potent.

Sensors inside detect your angle of lean and plan the traction control appropriately.

The 1299 supplants the preceding 1199 Panigale as Ducati's flagship bike of excess.

The much saner Multistrada is designed as a long distance tourer, even with two aboard.

The bike's front headlights pivot as the bike turns.

The technological centerpiece is the Inertia Measurement Unit, which calculates the bike’s four axes of movement.

The thin film transistor (TFT) dash lets you choose which of the four ride modes you want: sport, urban, touring, and enduro.

LIke the Scrambler, the Multistrada will be available in four trim options.

Here’s the thing about ridiculously overpowered motorcycles: No matter how under-qualified you are to ride one, it doesn’t matter. You want one. You want to find an open road, twist the throttle, and see what it feels like to become a human cannonball.

That’s the case with the demonic Ducati 1299 Panigale, the latest flagship from Bologna. It's a rolling circuit board with Tesla-caliber software, and it's a sharper weapon than any rider this side of a pro will ever need. It's the most insane bike within a brand known for excess, a more powerful and more sophisticated version of the 1199 Panigale that blew us away.

We love V-twins, particularly of the Italian variety. The Panigale's 1,285-cc mill puts out 205 horsepower, which is bonkers, even if Kawasaki's come along with the 300-horsepower H2R. That's up 10 ponies from the 1199 Panigale, and Ducati claims it's the most powerful twin on the planet. Torque is up, too. At 367 pounds without the fluids essential to its operation, this thing is no doubt wickedly fast.

The engine is wrapped in a frame with slightly more aggressive geometry to boost handling, which already was razor-sharp. Machinery at this level invariably makes you a better rider, because the computers are smarter than you are. The Panigale features a slew of computers that change the suspension in real time. The bike knows when you're in a deep lean and adjusts the damping, ABS and traction control accordingly. As you exit the turn, the rear suspension stiffens to improve grip, and wheelie control keeps you from lifting the front when you get on the throttle. The goal is to make all that power more usable.

Ducati, as usual, won’t talk performance specs, so there's no word on acceleration and top speed. Suffice to say "damn fast" and "absurd" cover it.

For the less suicidal, more pragmatic, or both, Ducati also updated the Multistrada. The big change is Desmodromic Variable Timing and dual spark ignition, which helps boost power and torque to a very respectable 160 ponies and 91.8 foot-pounds. The engine is smoother, quieter and cleaner, too. It's also got a suite of electronics, including traction control, ABS, and four-mode ride-by-wire. The engine is an impressive bit of tech; credit Ducati’s parent company VW Group, for the funding and technological resources required for development.

If you're feeling indulgent or completely irresponsible, take the Panigale over the more pedestrian Multistrada. Fair warning: This bike is smart, but it's still up to you to keep the rubber side down.